Heater Panel Decal

Has anyone tried these? Any tricks, technique, hints, or waste of time?

 

Hey Lee,
I could probably use the one with the Text. Where did you find them ?

 

Found originally on this site. Bought on eBay. Listed as Jeep, wagon, truck, willys decal. Bid starts at $3.50. Buy it now is $10. Looking for advise on how to carefully install them. If you don't find them, let me know and I will try to find the link.

 

nice tip
WILLYS JEEP WAGON TRUCK 1962-1964, CJ5& CJ6 to 71 Heater Face Plate DECAL | eBay

 

Keep in mind the original heater control panel didn't have a decal. The writing was screen printed or similar onto a painted finish. I can't see a decal wrapping around the edges very well, and don't know how well a decal would hold up.
-Donny

 

That looks really nice. If they stick well.

 

Agree, I was considering cutting out just the flat face area in case the corners won't work down. Thanks. I will try to post my results.

 

Gave it my best shot. The decal is quite forgiving and seems to stick quite well when rubbed in. Used an exacto knife. Was able to stretch the material to the form of the corners. Trimmed off excess. The lettering did not smear even.when rubbed quite hard. Time will tell. The right side is not the best, but this was my first. Your mileage may vary.

 

Wonder how the corners could be made without a slight wrinkle, the material would have to be like heat shrink ?
Looks great from the face, and nice to have the lettering

 

A heat gun may make the difference. I did not have one. My under-dash radio sets right beside it, so the right side won't show. And, the do look quite good from the front.

 

Glad to hear the decal works pretty well. I was skeptical. I wonder how one of these decals would work, cut down to just the face area, and buried in clear coat.
-Donny

 

They are a little thick. I think if the face was used only, it would look fine, but noticeable. I read on another ecj5 thread where they used heat. The material does easily stretch. Maybe if I had heated mine, the softened material would have formed around the corners better.

 

I'm in e-mail correspondence with the dude that had those made.......so I'm asking questions.

 

Any update on this? This is one of the last items I need to address.

 

I have not personally talked with him other than by e-mail............he did say that he has a technique for installation that he feels works best....I did get a few of those decals myself and I have his phone number.......and will call him when time allows...........or I can give it to you in a PM.

 

I messaged him on eBay, listed another one. Purchased at buy it now price, have not received it yet. Pretty friendly person, replies quick if message him.

Now when I get mine I still have to find how to get the heat hot cold slide control off. The fan has a set screw, the slide? Haven't figured that out yet.

 

The slide knob is pressed on at the time of OEM assembly. I carefully pried mine off with a small screw driver. It fit back on tight, but you could use glue if needed.

 

Does anyone make old fashioned water slide decals on a clear background? That would be perfect for the heater control. After applying, bury them in clearcoat.
-Donny

 

Here's a series of photos that walk through the steps I followed to install mine. I spoke with the seller, Dan Noyes from the Old Willys Forum, before I did this. He suggested using a vise to hold the metal cover in place in place initially (I used "soft-jaws" inserts in mine), as well as a heat gun to help smooth the corners out (I used medium heat on a 1500W gun).

Note that the adhesive on this decal is VERY forgiving, and easily re-positionable. I stuck it down and pulled it back off half a dozen times or more before I was satisfied with the alignment as shown in the second photo.

Though I think this installation turned out pretty well, if I did it again, I might try square-cutting the corners (i.e. removing a small square section from each corner, then folding the top, bottom, and sides down) instead of using the diagonal / mitered overlaps as I did below. But once the control unit is installed, I don't think it will matter very much.

Incidentally, Dan said that on the decals he's installed, he stripped the covers down to the bare metal first. However, as my cover had recently been painted with satin black epoxy spray paint, I decided to just scuff it up with sandpaper and clean before applying the decal.

This decal certainly seems to be a good product, and will hopefully hold up and continue to adhere well to the cover over time.